Huffines Institute - Articles

David Ferguson, Ph.D, RCEPHave you ever watched a marathon and wondered how individuals can run for over 26 miles? Have you ever wanted to be the one who runs for 26 miles? Do you find yourself saying that you can't run for 26 miles because you don't know how? If you answered yes to these questions, then this article is for you. It will provide a brief training program outline that can be applied to any endurance sport for anyone who wishes to compete in an endurance sport for ...

Travis Irby, M.A., M.EdMany athletes compete in sports year round. Sometimes the athlete is involved in one sport with one long season spent with various school and club teams throughout the year. Other times, an athlete is involved in several different sports over a year. Whatever the case, it is important that the year-round athlete prevent the mental and physical burnout that can come with the rigors of never-ending competition. Any sport or sports competed in should provide skills...

David Ferguson, Ph.D, RCEP In today’s sporting environment, great importance is placed on the health education of the athlete. This includes proper nutrition instruction, health assessment, and the application of proper treatments and rehabilitation modalities to injured athletes. However, this is a fairly new development in sport, and athletes who competed 30 years ago did not receive these benefits. Because of this, many former athletes are being diagnosed...

Kwame J.A. Agyemang, Ph.DFor quite some time, businesses and large corporations have used corporate social responsibility (CSR) as a management strategy for day-to-day operations. In summary, CSR offers a template for the way corporations should conduct business (e.g., their economic, legal, ethical, and discretionary responsibilities to society). The CSR strategy has especially been given further attention in light of two key factors: a) corporations are deemed influential members of society, a...

David Ferguson, Ph.D, RCEP One of the best parts of my job is that every day is different. I recall one day in particular when I received a phone call from a woman interested in coming into the lab to have a fitness assessment done. The interesting part was that she said she did not want to do a VO2­ max test (treadmill test to measure aerobic fitness). I found this very odd because the majority of the population does not know what a VO2max test is, let...

Travis Irby, M.A, M.EdThe concept of dog years lets us quantify how man’s best friend ages. The popular myth is that a dog ages every seven years for one human year. While that is not necessarily the most scientific explanation for the canine aging process, the idea of aging many years in one is something that many people can relate to. As people get older, they tend to feel older, and the feeling of aging seems to increase exponentially with time. These changes can even be ...

Steve Bui, M.S.Oh, glorious caffeine, one of man’s best friends! For typical college students and other active individuals, it is a commonly required form of nourishment for any function before 10:00 AM. While we all know the basic immediate effects of caffeine (decreased fatigue, increased energy, and decreased appetite), it might be interesting to look at how that cup of coffee might affect other parts of your day. One area you may not have considered is how it will affect the daily work...

David Ferguson, Ph.D, RCEP We have all heard the late night talk show hosts joke about an athlete’s inability to retire. In fact, there seems to be a consensus that once an athlete reaches a certain age, he should retire from the sport. One such example comes to mind; when I was sitting in an airport restaurant which had a football game on the television, the gentleman sitting next to me made the comment, “Brett Favre has been playing as long as I have been alive, he shou...

Faith A. Lightfoot, BSE What do gymnasts Kathy Johnson, Nadia Comaneci and Cathy Rigby have in common? Over the past years they have all come forward and admitted to fighting an eating disorder. Cathy Rigby, a 1972 Olympian, battled anorexia and bulimia for 12 years. She went into cardiac arrest on two occasions as a result of it. Whether the eating disorder is anorexia, reduced food intake or bulimia, excessive eating and purging, this disorder is not going away in the sports field. In 197...

Faith A. Lightfoot, BSEWith the introduction of Redbull to the United States in 1997, many athletes started consuming these drinks for additional energy and a reduction of fatigue. However, as word spread about the effects, the general public joined this drink craze. With “31% of energy drink consumers between 12-17 years old, and 34% ranging from 18-24 years” (1), there now seems to be concern regarding the safety of these drinks by athletes and non-athletes alike. What’s...